As soon as the door opened, Fang Lang smelled the cigar smoke wafting out from inside. It was obvious that a cigar tasting event was indeed being held inside.
Unlike the smoky environment that Fang Lang had imagined, although there was a strong smell of cigar smoke inside, there was not much smoke in the air, which showed that the ventilation inside was very good.
Although the lighting is not as bright as on the first floor, the environment can definitely be called comfortable and the light looks very soft. British gentlemen in suits are gathering in groups of three or five to chat.
Most people were holding cigars and wine glasses in their hands, looking very casual.
As the door opened, everyone's attention was drawn to it. When they saw Reinhardt walking in with a young Asian man, everyone's eyes froze.
As the host, Fit Henderson stood up and walked to Fang Lang. After greeting Fang Lang with a smile, he turned to face the people in the room, clapped his hands, attracted everyone's attention, and said:
"Dear guests, this is our distinguished guest today, Rear Admiral Fang Lang from the Brazilian Navy. Please applaud and welcome him."
Everyone in the room smiled and applauded politely upon hearing this. Since they were not familiar with the people and Fang Lang was not sure of their identities, he could only nod politely.
Then Fit Henderson took Fang Lang back to the sofa area where he had just been. When several people who had been chatting with Mr. Henderson saw the two of them coming, they all stood up to greet them.
...
...
Reinhardt took the opportunity to slip away to accompany his fiancée.
Fit Henderson enthusiastically introduced Fang Lang to several friends here, including officials from the British Royal Naval Commission and senior officials of the British government.
The one who caught Fang Lang's attention the most was the Commissioner of the London Police Department, who was also Reinhart's future father-in-law, a middle-aged white man with a somewhat ferocious appearance. Fang Lang really found it difficult to connect him with Christina downstairs.
In addition, there was another person who was an official from the British Colonial Affairs Commission. Although this guy looked very enthusiastic, Fang Lang always felt that he seemed a little haggard.
There was also a middle-aged man who looked very wealthy and ruddy. From his self-introduction, he seemed to be an aristocrat who had just returned to Britain from the colonies.
After everyone got to know each other, they found a seat and sat down. Fang Lang picked up a cigar on the table, put it under his nose and sniffed it, then began to taste the cigar on his own, without rushing to join in the conversation.
The content of everyone's conversation was unexpectedly casual. There was no content about national affairs. Instead, they were mostly discussing their respective family situations. What they were discussing now was the upcoming wedding of two young people, Reinhardt and Christina.
Fang Lang thought, no wonder Reinhardt just ran away, he probably expected this! However, Fang Lang also understood that this was probably related to the presence of an outsider like him.
Just as Fang Lang was listening to everyone chatting and lighting a cigar, a middle-aged man with a very wealthy appearance and ruddy complexion gestured to Fang Lang with the whiskey in his hand. Fang Lang looked at him with some surprise.
He politely raised his glass and clinked it with the other person's.
"Hello, General Fang! My name is Suleiman Brom. Nice to meet you."
Out of politeness, Fang Lang smiled, took a sip of whiskey, and nodded to the other party.
"Hello Mr. Bloom! Nice to meet you!"
The other party came to Fang Lang very naturally and whispered to him:
"I heard from Mr. Henderson that your business is very big. I wonder if there is any chance for cooperation."
Hearing this, Fang Lang looked the other person up and down with some surprise. He thought that the people in this room were all officials from the military and political circles, but he didn't expect that this noble who said he came back from the colony was actually a businessman.
"Oh! I wonder how Mr. Bloom wants to cooperate?"
Suleiman Brom turned his head and came close to Fang Lang and said:
"I heard that your global shipping company is very powerful. My family owns a large number of plantations in India, with a large backlog of cotton and grain. You also know that India will be independent soon, and I don't want to leave our family's wealth to those lazy guys."
It seems that Mr. Suleiman Broome is a former Indian colonial aristocrat who was forced to return to Britain because of India's independence. Now that India is going to be independent, his plantation may be taken back, or he feels that it is no longer safe.
You want to transfer wealth out of somewhere, but to be honest, India has been seeking independence for such a long time. If you don't prepare early, and then start considering it when others are about to become independent, wouldn't it be too late?
Besides, as far as Fang Lang knew, India's independence seemed to have only taken over government assets and did not forcibly confiscate British private property. In other words, their family's assets in India, such as plantations, should not actually be affected by India's independence.
So why did he say he didn't want to leave his family wealth to Indians?
However, Fang Lang had no good feelings towards India, so he didn't care whether there was any trick involved. If the other party just wanted his group's shipping company to help him transport supplies, it would not be difficult for him.
Therefore, he said without hesitation:
"If you need my shipping company to help you transport your goods back to the UK, I think that will be no problem. I can ask the head of the UK branch of Global Shipping Company to discuss this matter with you."
Unexpectedly, Suleiman Brom shook his head and said:
"No, no, I'm not going to ship these materials back to the UK. To be honest, the UK may not be able to digest these materials for a while. The British factories suffered huge losses due to the war, and many factories are still not operating normally.
If they are shipped to the UK, it will just be a backlog of materials from one place to another, which is meaningless."
Now Fang Lang was a little confused about the other party's intentions. He frowned and looked at the other party and said:
"So what does Brom mean?"
The ruddy Suleiman Brom smiled shyly and said:
"The only country that is capable of consuming this batch of materials is the United States. But the United States itself is a major cotton and grain producer, and this year's local cotton and grain have had a bumper harvest.
Coupled with the local tariff protection policy, our products simply cannot be sold there, and even if we sell them there will be no profit at all, so..."
This guy was just talking nonsense in a roundabout way. Fang Lang had no idea what he wanted to say specifically, but he didn't take the initiative to speak. He just looked at him quietly, wanting to see what he wanted to do!
Suleiman Brom was also a little embarrassed when he saw Fang Lang's expression. After thinking it over again and again, he gritted his teeth and said:
"I want to know if General Fang's company is interested in taking over my batch of supplies. Don't worry, given my relationship with the Henderson family, I will never cheat you. As long as you are willing, I can sell it to you at the lowest price."
Fang Lang looked at this guy with some confusion. He really didn't understand what the other party meant. After all, materials such as cotton and grain were absolutely in short supply at all times.
The world is in such a mess right now, with independence movements happening everywhere and more places at war than at peace. If you ship these things here, you'll definitely make a fortune.
Why would this guy think of selling it to him at the lowest price.
Fang Lang absolutely did not believe that the other party really could not find a transportation company. After all, although the British were in decline, given their status, it was impossible for them to not even have the ability to mobilize civilian cargo ships.
There must be some hidden secret that Fang Lang doesn't know.
Therefore, at this time, there was no way Fang Lang would agree to this benefit that seemed to be delivered right to his doorstep.
"Mr. Bloom, I'm really sorry, I'm not interested in this kind of business."
Seeing Fang Lang shaking his head firmly, with no room for negotiation, Suleiman Brom also understood the other party's concerns. He looked at the situation around him and realized that some things were obviously not suitable to be said directly here.
I could only lower my voice again and say:
"General Fang, please don't rush to refuse. Let me finish what I have to say first.
There is absolutely no problem with this batch of goods, they are indeed mine. But now they are being targeted by those greedy guys, they don't want me to ship these goods away, but want to buy them directly at a lower price.
I have discussed this matter with General Henderson. The current situation in India is not suitable for Britain to intervene directly, so he recommended you to me.
It is said that the Whip of God military contracting company that is currently serving Americans in Greece and Türkiye is your company, right?
If this company could send professional armed personnel into India to escort the supplies out, those greedy guys would definitely not dare to stop them.
So now you are the only one who can do this business, you know what I mean?"
At this time Fang Lang finally understood the other party's intention. Obviously, the forces in India were unwilling to let this guy transport these goods out, and wanted to directly take over the huge batch of supplies in the other party's hands.
But this guy was obviously unwilling, so he took the initiative to come to Henderson, the Chief of Naval Staff, for help. However, now that Britain has agreed to recognize India's independence, it does not want to create new branches at this time, so he recommended himself to the other party.
So can I do this business myself? The answer is of course yes, because the Whip of God company I own is already engaged in this business, plus my own shipping company.
It is not too easy to take over this business. As for whether the current chaotic situation in India will become more serious because of his intervention, Fang Lang doesn't care at all.
But he still felt that there seemed to be some problems here, and things did not seem as simple as the other party said.
“In that case, I can arrange for someone from the Whip of God Company to work with you, and you can just hire them to help you escort the goods out. I believe your losses will be smaller this way.
What do you think?
Suleiman Brom obviously did not expect Fang Lang to make such a suggestion. This clearly meant that he only wanted to earn the part he deserved and did not want to get too involved in the local disputes in India.
He didn't quite understand why there would be such a person who didn't want any benefits, but since the other party had already said so, he didn't know what to say for a while.
I could only laugh dryly and say:
"I have only found buyers for part of my goods. Most of the rest have not been sold yet. If I hire them to ship the goods, I don't know where to ship them.
So, I wonder if General Fang is interested in taking this part of the cargo."
Fang Lang felt more and more strange when he heard this. It was really out of the blue that someone couldn't sell cotton and grain. The more the other party wanted to give him benefits, the more Fang Lang felt that there was something wrong.
But for a moment, Fang Lang didn't understand what the problem was. Looking at Mr. Suleiman Brom in front of him, he became more alert.
Although the two of them deliberately lowered their voices when talking, Fang Lang was the first guest to come here today, and many people would unconsciously turn their eyes to him.
Everyone felt that Henderson, a dignified naval chief of staff, would not deliberately befriend an ordinary Brazilian rear admiral. Therefore, everyone was wondering what Fang Lang's outstanding qualities were.
After seeing this guy Suleiman Brom actively approaching the other party, everyone felt that the other party's identity was not simple.
You have to know that although Suleiman Broome's family is mainly active in British colonies, his family's influence in British colonies is very powerful. Whether it is India, Australia, Canada, or South Africa, his family owns huge plantations and mines.
His grandfather even gained a lot of benefits for his family in India while serving as the Governor-General of India.
Their family was strongly opposed to India's independence this time, but unfortunately they were powerless and their opposition ultimately came to nothing.
India's independence obviously brought huge losses to their family, and Suleiman Brom had to return to Britain to live because of India's independence.
But even so, this guy's family's wealth makes everyone living in the British Isles jealous.
Such a guy actually took the initiative to stick to the young guest of the Chief of Naval Staff. If anyone still thinks that this young man has a simple identity, then he has no right to sit here.
Therefore, everyone's eyes were quietly paying attention to the communication between the two people.
Although the content of their conversation cannot be confirmed, based on their expressions, we can roughly judge that their communication does not seem to be going smoothly.
As the host, Fit Henderson, who was sitting next to the two of them, was of course also paying attention to the interaction between the two. When he found that the two seemed to be in a stalemate, he naturally intervened to break the deadlock.
"Fang, did the London Police Department give you a satisfactory answer to what happened last night? If you are not satisfied, the Commissioner of the London Police, Mr. Wan George Ceci, is here. You must ask him in person."
Fang Lang, who was thinking about how to get out, heard what Fit Henderson said, and quickly took the opportunity to turn around, nodded to Suleiman Brom, and then turned to Fit Henderson and said:
"Thank you Uncle Henderson for your concern. Last night, the London Police Department sent a chief inspector to give me a satisfactory answer in person. The matter has been perfectly resolved, and I don't plan to pursue it further."
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